Thursday, November 28, 2013

We don't have many diploid patterns yet but are working to correct that issue. Fully half of the diploid crosses this year involved patterned parentages so the next couple of seasons should be interesting, fer shure!

My good friend Dan Robarts has had a huge influence on my hybridizing for patterns. A few years ago when he needed a place to plant his seedlings, i volunteered an extra piece of ground that was sitting empty here. Little did I know that without saying much of anything, Dan was setting me up for a big fall...it's gotten to the point where I really like patterned blooms and am actively working on creating more for my own pleasure.Here are a few of the best from the past summer with more to follow in the immediate future.

Digging plants to fill sales requests from the heavy clay topsoil here where I live in northern WV it difficult at the best of times, even when the soil is amended. In early spring when the clay clings to the roots and the clumps are heavy with moisture, it can be exhausting. So, I made the decision this past summer to construct a series of smaller beds along the front of the newly constructed retaining walls.The beds are roughly sized at 5' x 3' and have a depth of from 10" to 16". They were filled with a mix of soil from the garden, composted cow manure, mushroom compost and double ground hardwood mulch. I can get 12 large tetraploid plants (double fans) in each bed and 15 smaller tets or diploids.Here is what they look like. It sure is going to be easier to get plants out to customers nxt spring!

One of the things I've determined to make happen over the next few years is to create growing beds that are terraced, thoroughly amended, gently sloped and designed for ease of maintenance and hybridization.One large bed was created last year but the one built this year was on a steeper slope, requiring a taller retaining wall. It was also wider and longer than last year's bed.Here are a few photos of the process.

Early stages - moving the ground back to start digging post holes - strange how in this photo the lay of the ground doesn't look nearly as steep as it really is.

Posts are in and boards are going up on the lowest section of the wall.

Boards are all up, landscape fabric is stapled on the 'back face' - soil side - of the boards and gravel has been poured to hold the bottom of the fabric in place and help provide some drainage at the base of the wall. At this point backfilling has just started - shovel full by shovel full, wheelbarrow by wheelbarrow.

The road side of the bed is being built - boards slide into a slot so they may be removed in the future if I ever want to bring in a tractor and till the entire bed.

Here are a few of the toothy edged seedlings that were in the seedling beds this past summer. RANDY STEPHENS, TRANSYLVANIAN TANGO, HEARTBEAT OF HEAVEN, GNASHING OF TEETH, ROGUE, SPINY SEA URCHIN, ROSY SPIKETAIL and other genetics are represented.

Here are a few of the reds we are working with here at Adena Daylilies - the two diploids share IDA MAE NORRIS as the pollen parent while the tetraploids have a wide range of parentage genetics including TRANSYLVANIAN TANGO, RANDY STEPHENS, ALSO KNOWN AS, ROSY SPIKETAIL, REASON FOR TREASON, IT IS FINISHED and several others.

Here are a few of the yellow seedlings from the past season. I really love yellow blooms though there doesn't seem to be much excitement from the general daylily public about this particular color these days and that's understandable with all of the advancements coming along in toothy, pattern and sculpt daylilies. Still, I'll always make some yellow crosses each year and keep a yellow line going because I believe they are the foundation color of many successful gardens.

Thursday, November 21, 2013

Please make all checks
out to Mike Derrow. We will
do our very best to assure that all plants will be at least double fans.
If they aren’t, I will reduce the price and send a refund, but will also
contact you first.

Shipping Information – please PRINT or write
neatly…

Name to ship to

Street Address 1

Street Address 2

Town, State, Zip Code

Date To Ship

Digging and shipping can usually
begin around mid-April, perhaps a little later, if the ground is too wet or
the weather is still cold. We generally ONLY accept spring shipping
orders and shipping stops around mid-June.

Write down any other special information:

Quantity

Cultivar Name

Price

Price Extended

Abnegation

$80

Betwixt And Between

$80

Chantry Chapel

$80

Into The Badlands

$80

Rock Me Baby

$80

Spine Tingler

$100

Vision Seeker

$100

Adena Blizzard

$60

Also Known As

$75

Sometimes Shadows Speak

$80

Empire Of Dawn And Dusk

$100

Adena Alias

$75

The Tribble With Blue

$50

Adena Inferno

$40

Dappled Dynamo

$40

Adena Babs

$30

Charlie Dale

$40

Lunar Empire

$40

Prelude To Panoply

$25

Pink Stripes

$25

While we no longer automatically send bonus plants with orders, we
usually find a way to ‘add a little more’ to your shipment in the way of extra
fans of the plants you ordered or with one of our other intros, or a fine intro
from another hybridizer. Thanks again for your order!

Plants Sub Total

Don’t forget to take your
discount(s) if ordering more than one of the 2013 introductions.

Shipping/Handling - $10.00 for
orders under $100, NO CHARGE for orders of $100 or more…

FINAL TOTAL

Print this form out, and place in an envelope with
your check or money order and mail to:

Here are our eight new introductions for this year which include seven tetraploid cultivars and one diploid cultivar. Registration had been completed and all plants were dug, divided, lined out as double fans in late August and early September. Almost all offerings are limited this year with the exception of VISION SEEKER which multiplies well creating a good supply and ADENA BLIZZARD which also increases well.Those who have followed our program know that, along with hardiness, vigor, fertility and unique faces, rebloom is an important characteristic that we strive for in our plants. However, rebloom is not a strong element in this group of plants, with the exception, again, of VISION SEEKER and ADENA BLIZZARD.Last year we tried a different sort of pricing structure but it ended up being confusing for some customers so this year prices were lowered on every tetraploid introduction to bring the total price when purchasing multiple introductions into line with the price discounts of last year.There is no discount on ADENA BLIZZARD - the plant is too special and is already offered at a bargain price. However, anyone wanting to purchase all seven tetraploid introductions may have them for $450, which is a savings of 25% off of the regular price.

Shipping is free on all orders totaling $100 or more and on all orders that include at least one 2014 introduction with payment received before January 1st.

If you have questions regarding any of these plants or their availability, send an email to:adena156c@gmail.comand we will do our best to answer quickly. There is a printable ORDER FORM link listed on the right hand side of this page with this years introductions and prices for available previous introductions. If you want to place an order, just print the page or copy and paste it into a word processor, print it out, fill it in and return it with payment.PLEASE - we are unable to accept orders from international customers unless you have a shipping address within the continental U. S.ALSO, all payments must be by check or money order made out to Mike Derrow. Sorry, we are not set up to accept PayPal, credit or debit card payments.

TETRAPLOID OFFERINGS

ABNEGATION – T08-15
– tetraploid, 32”, 6.5”, evergreen, EM, 1-3 laterals, 22-30 buds, fertile both
ways but pods take persistence, some rebloom but not consistent enough to register it as
such. Color is a saturated Chinese Red,
with yellow to green throat. Limited. (Wren’s Song x It Is Finished). $80, double fans

ABNEGATION – My hybridizing friends sometimes say I'm too tough on my plants during the selection process and I have to mention that for the last couple of years I searched for reasons to disqualify this seedling from introduction. I mean, it’s an orange and I
don’t have an orange line, pods are difficult and it doesn't like cool nights.However, after
performing well in 2012, blooming nicely and reblooming under harsh
conditions (and we ALL remember how tough that year was for daylilies!), then blooming well and reblooming on totally neglected, weedy,
overgrown clumps this past summer, this one rejected every attempt I made to
pass it by. My friend Carl Harmon noticed and called my attention to it when he visited this past summer and he's got a great eye for plants, so here it is leading off the list of introductions for this year

Neither photo accurately portrays the impact
of the color which isn’t as ‘soft’ as the tones of the left hand photo nor as quite as veined
as in the right hand photo (but the color is spot on).Everyone who
sees this one comments on it because it’s so large a bloom with bold, striking color that carries far and dominates a setting.Pods are hard, but I’ve got plenty of seedlings from it and made over
100 seeds on it this year with pollen from Melanie Mason’s excellent RED RIGHT
RETURNING.Some years it has instant
rebloom, other seasons it has late rebloom but neither type is consistent on this plant.It clumps up quickly and makes a STUNNING display in the garden!

These seedlings are both from a cross of ABNEGATION x TRANSYLVANIAN TANGO. Both are tall, have large blooms and multi-branched scapes. They are both being used in my red program.

BETWIXT AND BETWEEN
– The name relates to the attributes of the plant…is it a bitone or a
bicolor…it seems to be caught in between those two color classifications…is
there simply a gold edge or a toothy edge – I’ve seen it with both, but most
often with knobs and hooks…are the petals pink or rose lavender…is it a rebloomer or not…some years it does
(it did this past summer) while in other years there is no rebloom. Either way, it’s a beautiful flower on a
strong plant combining Moldovan, Reckamp and Salter (which also means Munson) genetics. This is one of those plants you suspect is an introduction the first time you lay eyes on it. Scapes are well branched,
foliage is a clean medium green, leaves are low and arching and it sets pods
easily for me. Seedling bloom faces can
be quite large – the one in the photo below is 7” and many B & B seedlings are bitones
with very large watermarks.

This shows a typical BETWIXT AND BETWEEN scape and a seedling from a cross of BETWIXT AND BETWEEN x (WOMEN SEEKING MEN x SHORES OF TIME). Blooms are 7", the scape is 38" tall and there are 3 lateral branches with budcounts in the 25-30 range.

CHANTRY CHAPEL - This plant is one of my all time favorites for a number of reasons, not the least being the clean, bright color of the petals. Mainly though, I like it because it is so dependable. It shows up morning after morning, year after year as one of the most consistent daylilies I've ever grown. Though short, the scape is well branched and all of the blooms show well due to the low, arching foliage. It’s fertile both ways and a parent of many, many toothy seedlings for me. The toothy edge in this one isn’t as dramatic as the edge on Transylvanian Tango but this intro has teeth on both sides of the cross going back to grandparent Rogue from Melanie Mason and pollen parent Red Fang, which is a grandparent of Shores Of Time, a recent Stout Medal candidate for Pat Stamile. The colors just glow in the morning and it opens very well after cool nights. It also reblooms in some years. I think it’s important to note that as a breeder this plant will produce much taller seedlings when crossed to a taller plant. The left hand seedling shown below is 32” tall with 4 laterals as a first year blooming plant this past summer.

A typical CHANTRY CHAPEL scape from this past summer - though short at 22", there are plenty of well spaced branches making this a good candidate for the front of a mixed border.

These seedlings are from a cross of CHANTRY CHAPEL x RANDY STEPHENS (left) and CHANTRY CHAPEL x ROSY SPIKETAIL (right).

INTO THE BADLANDS – T08-10 – tetraploid – 32”, 5.5”, semi-ev/dormant, EM, 2 to 4 lateral
branches, 22-35 buds, EMO, fertile both ways but pods are small with few seeds,
rebloom. Color is a rich, smoky wine red with black purple eye and knobby picotee of the same color. Petals are edged in white and there is a yellow to green throat. Limited. (No Blue Oxfords x Edge of Darkness). $80, double fans.

INTO THE BADLANDS – This is not your typical, northern attempt at imitating a southern daylily introduction, meaning ultra-round, ultra- edged, ultra-large eyed/edged daylily…nope, definitely not a ‘specimen’ daylily, but what a performer INTO THE BADLANDS can be. The year after the clump was moved from the seedling bed, divided, and lined out as single fans, every fan put up a huge, well branched scape and then an instant rebloom scape – one fan put up 4 rebloom scapes at every point on the compass! The blooms are more triangular than round but show the petal and edge colors well, along with the velvet surface of the petals and eye. ITB will throw teeth in some crosses even when the other partner isn’t toothy and can give dramatically rich, dark colors in some crosses. A wonderful landscape plant, it continues to bloom well while neglected and overgrown with weeds here. The foliage is low, arching, dark green and seems to be very resistant to rust. I’m excitedly looking forward to seeing the offspring from a cross with Very Berry Candy…those could be very special, just like the seedling below!

These are a couple typical scapes from the past season on INTO THE BADLANDS and the seedling is from a cross of INTO THE BADLANDS x PATHWAY OF PEACE - selected this summer, it has a 30" scape, 6" bloom, 3 lateral branches and reblooms.

ROCK ME BABY –
T08-18 – tetraploid – 32”, 6”, evergreen, EM, 2-4 lateral branches, 24-34 buds,
fertile both ways but pods take persistence. Petals are a rich, royal purple
with a large, dramatic violet-blue eye and picotee edge.
The edges of the petals are often rimmed in white and there is a yellow to green throat. Limited. (Rock Solid x
Mary’s Baby). $80, double fans.

ROCK ME BABY –
As pretty as this flower is, it's path to introduction was not easy as I felt the form and coloration were fairly similar to
many introductions from other hybridizers. Then the spring and summer of 2012
came along, during which this evergreen performed like a trooper with great
scapes, some rebloom and richly colored blooms.I should mention that before I made a final decision towards introduction I purchased a few of the other well
known intros in this color range –Doyle Pierce, Essence Of Royalty, Captain Marvel, etc. – but the thing is, all of them get their color influence from Tet. LBB genetics
and ROCK ME BABY doesn’t…all are nice plants but as overall garden specimens they did
not match RMB in my garden over the last two seasons except for being more pod
fertile.ROCK ME BABY would be a great
partner for plants in this color range coming from TLBB genetics – in fact, I’ve
already made some crosses of that type.Look
at the scapes in the included photo – they all came from one plant that was
lined out as a 2 fan piece in the fall of 2011…look at the branching and number
of bud scars!With the dormant Rock Solid and northern hybridized Mary's Baby as parents, this evergreen introduction
is hardy and vigorous and can be used in purple or eyed/edged
breeding. I'm going to use it in the greenhouse this winter with pink and patterned partners.If only it were easily pod fertile, which it
isn’t, but I still have a fair number of seeds from it as a pod parent by being
persistent and putting pollen on every bloom.

Scapes from this past summer, the plant of ROCK ME BABY that produced these was planted as 2 fans in the late fall of 2011.

SPINE TINGLER –
T10-55 – tetraploid – 27”, 5.75”, semi-ev, EM, 1 lateral branch, 16-22 buds, EMO,
fertile both ways, very easy to set pods. Petal and sepal color is a satiny medium pink to lavender pink. There is a green to yellow throat and a soft mango toned halo surrounding the throat area. The teeth often have a green tint in the morning which fades to a soft yellow by mid-day. Extremely limited – only 9 plants to
sell. (Heartbeat Of Heaven x Forestlake
Ragamuffin). $100, double fans

SPINE TINGLER –
The problems with Forestlake Ragamuffin are many, including short scapes, poor
branching and muddy color which usually dominates or at least greatly
influences color in the resulting seedlings.
I took a chance on crossing a somewhat muddy orange/melon with a beautiful clean lavender and
hit the jackpot with these satiny pink, toothy blooms. The blooms on SPINE TINGLER aren’t as large as those on Heartbeat Of Heaven but they open well, have wonderful pink coloration (a real break in color out of FLR), lots
of large light yellow to yellow green sharks teeth and the scapes are taller
than those of FLR. I wish there was
another branch or two but decent scape density make for a satisfying bloom display and SPINE TINGLER has very, very easy pod fertilitymaking it a desirable plant for toothy
breeding. I’m excited to see what comes from the crosses I made with SPINE
TINGLER and Transylvania Tango, White Fang, Midnight Dazzle, Ruffled Strawberry
Parfait and many other toothy cultivars this past summer.

VISION SEEKER –
T10-16 – tetraploid – 30”, 6.25”, semi-ev, EM, 2-4 lateral branches, 23-35
buds, EMO, fertile both ways, rebloom. Petal color is a medium pink that can have various overlays of rose, sandstone, buff and cream depending on soil, temperature and time of year. The eye and edge are a chocolate purple with lots of velvet on the surface. There is a triangular shaped green throat, with light rib extensions from the throat area and a medium red-violet band separating the throat from the eye. Good supply. (Storm Shelter x Clarity Of Vision). $100, double fans

VISION SEEKER –
Were I to purchase just one plant from the offerings this year, VISION SEEKER
would be the one. Stunningly beautiful
from the initial bloom 5 years ago, I believe it is the best overall plant I’ve
hybridized so far. VS scapes are tall,
well branched, blooms are easily pod fertile, it reblooms even when loaded with
pods, the large, open faced blooms open well on cool mornings, it’s a great
parent passing many excellent qualities down to the offspring and it is a
vigorous increaser, clumping up fast.
For some strange reason, combining the single edged VS with other single
edged partners often results in double or even triple edged seedlings. VISION SEEKER also works quite well in toothy
crosses…I’m excited to see the seedlings I’ll get from a cross of VS x
Spinefeld! It is an excellent
combination of hardy, northern Emmerich and Norris genetic lines.

Typical rebloom scape from VISION SEEKER this past summer.

These are seedlings from using VISION SEEKER as a pod parent - the left has a Mike Lyons seedling as the pollen parent while the right has GOD SAVE THE QUEEN as the pollen donor.

ADENA BLIZZARD – The
little gem continues our work with everblooming diploid daylilies in colors
other than shades of yellow. While not
the whitest seedling in the fields, this one produces and produces scapes. I’ve seen it throw up to 7 rounds of scapes
in a season when there is adequate rain.
Bloom form is round, it opens very well on cool mornings and for an
everbloomer, there’s good – heck, even great branching. Scapes usually have 2 laterals but some mid
and late season scapes can have 4 laterals.
It even shows good rust resistance here.
The only negative is that the pistils are often curled or split, making
hybridizing with it difficult but when there’s a pistil, it’s easily pod
fertile. I started using ADENA BLIZZARD
with colors and patterns this year to add rebloom to those lines…it will be
interesting to see the results in a year or two.

This is a seedling from a cross of ADENA BLIZZARD x Wetzel White rebloom sdlg...a Pete Wetzel reblooming white seedling that he sent me several years ago. There is a short row of seedlings from this cross and I was so impressed with them that I re-made the cross long this past summer and set lots of pods on the 4 best seedlings of the cross. Several of these 1st year seedlings bloomed from June until October and a few were whiter than either parent.